This blog is my attempt to document our busy but BLESSED lives raising and educating our children for His glory. A child of God, wife to one, and mom to6 fabulous kids. We are in our 10th year of homeschooling using a Classical ~ Charlotte Mason approach. Come along for the good, the bad & the ugly.

Thursday, July 30, 2015

We upgraded our family vehicle on Tuesday morning to the 2015 Odyssey Elite. It is very similar to my 2008 Odyssey Touring, however, I won’t be paying $$$$ for the tires like we were doing. We choose a local dealer who offers “Priorities for Life”, meaning we get FREE:

~ Oil & filter changes for life

~ State inspections for life

~ Engine Guaranteed for life

~ Parts & Service Guaranteed for life

~ Towing for life

Not too shabby a deal, especially considering we will be in our current location for 3-4 more years. My husband worked his magic and was able to get the price for the 2015 model 15% below MSRP and a fantastic offer for our 2008!!!

Last Friday when I had to replace my back tires, we got serious about car shopping to replace my old Honda. You see, we had just replaced all four tires earlier this year because we knew we would be going up and down the highway for Mikayla’s gymnastic season. I was also quickly approaching 145,000 miles, which is not bad for a Honda, but because of our upcoming travel and Mr.M’s work schedule we decided it was best time to sell the 2008 and get a 2015.

My budget allowed for me to choose from any vehicle as long as it had good gas mileage, that was Mr. M’s only stipulation. I have been wanting to go back to an SUV for a few years now because I wanted to be a little higher off the ground, especially with all the 18 wheeler trucks I share the road with. I was “<” close to getting a Ford Expedition EL, but I quickly came to my senses while comparing gas expenditure, fuel tanks and mileage. Not to mention the fact that in less than 3 weeks we will have a full time residential college student. Books are expensive guys!!!

So, while we were at the dealer getting the 2008 tires changed I took a good look at the 2015 Odyssey’s and asked around to friends who have more than two kids in carseats. This van is quite fancy, even compared to my 2008 Touring model. Yesterday I sent a text message to my daughter while I was in the driveway figuring out how to program the radio. I am still getting used to the push button start and smart key fob. I have only locked myself out once when I left my keyfob inside the cup holder. Thank goodness I was at home and had the extra keyfob inside. The kids love the bigger DVD system and the fact that they could play the Wii in the van on trips. I haven’t figured that out yet, but there are outlets and plugs. Oh! did I mention there is a built in vacuum!? I may just have the cleanest vehicle yet.

I love the fact that I can fit our two Britax car seats side-by-side in the middle row. We will have littles in car seats/booster seats for the next 5-6 years so that's a huge plus for me. The only thing I miss on my new model from my 2008 model is the adjustable pedals. I am a bit vertically challenged so not having to sit so close to the steering wheel was a big plus. The new model offers the same thing with an adjustable steering wheel. It has taken me a few days to get used to it and get my seat just right.

We upgraded our family vehicle on Tuesday morning to the 2015 Odyssey Elite. It is very similar to my 2008 Odyssey Touring, however, I won’t be paying $$$$ for the tires like we were doing. We choose a local dealer who offers “Priorities for Life”, meaning we get FREE:

~ Oil & filter changes for life

~ State inspections for life

~ Engine Guaranteed for life

~ Parts & Service Guaranteed for life

~ Towing for life

Not too shabby a deal, especially considering we will be in our current location for 3-4 more years. My husband worked his magic and was able to get the price for the 2015 model 15% below MSRP and a fantastic offer for our 2008!!!

Last Friday when I had to replace my back tires, we got serious about car shopping to replace my old Honda. You see, we had just replaced all four tires earlier this year because we knew we would be going up and down the highway for Mikayla’s gymnastic season. I was also quickly approaching 145,000 miles, which is not bad for a Honda, but because of our upcoming travel and Mr.M’s work schedule we decided it was best time to sell the 2008 and get a 2015.

My budget allowed for me to choose from any vehicle as long as it had good gas mileage, that was Mr. M’s only stipulation. I have been wanting to go back to an SUV for a few years now because I wanted to be a little higher off the ground, especially with all the 18 wheeler trucks I share the road with. I was “<” close to getting a Ford Expedition EL, but I quickly came to my senses while comparing gas expenditure, fuel tanks and mileage. Not to mention the fact that in less than 3 weeks we will have a full time residential college student. Books are expensive guys!!!

So, while we were at the dealer getting the 2008 tires changed I took a good look at the 2015 Odyssey’s and asked around to friends who have more than two kids in carseats. This van is quite fancy, even compared to my 2008 Touring model. Yesterday I sent a text message to my daughter while I was in the driveway figuring out how to program the radio. I am still getting used to the push button start and smart key fob. I have only locked myself out once when I left my keyfob inside the cup holder. Thank goodness I was at home and had the extra keyfob inside. The kids love the bigger DVD system and the fact that they could play the Wii in the van on trips. I haven’t figured that out yet, but there are outlets and plugs. Oh! did I mention there is a built in vacuum!? I may just have the cleanest vehicle yet.

I love the fact that I can fit our two Britax car seats side-by-side in the middle row. We will have littles in car seats/booster seats for the next 5-6 years so that's a huge plus for me. The only thing I miss on my new model from my 2008 model is the adjustable pedals. I am a bit vertically challenged so not having to sit so close to the steering wheel was a big plus. The new model offers the same thing with an adjustable steering wheel. It has taken me a few days to get used to it and get my seat just right.